Archive for the
‘Internet’ Category

Home / Internet

Five examples of unique mobile retailer content 0

What makes good content marketing for a mobile device?

It informs the consumer, and engages them. It helps the consumer make decisions and connect with the brand. The content goes beyond advice on making a purchase or finding a store nearby. Over time, it builds customer loyalty.

Content Marketing Institute recently came up with five solid examples of retail content created for mobile devices. For those focusing on effective mobile content, these should be worth a look:

teavana_artTeavana’s mobile site (shown at left) is unique and informative content for fans of the specialty tea shop found in many shopping malls, offering tips from a tea blending tool to brewing instructions for the perfect pot.

An app created for Lowe’s stands out for its “My Lowe’s” feature that helps shoppers remember what they bought at the home improvement store before.

A user-friendly Domino’s Tracker shows what stage a customer’s pizza order is in, whether it is still in the oven or is on its way to being delivered in 30 minutes or less.

Best Buy’s mobile app features content that helps educate consumers as they make their in-store decisions, like a scanner that they can use in the store to compare product features and check out reviews.

wendys_artThe MyWendy’s app (shown at left) has content geared toward the calorie conscious. Customers can set the calorie range for their meal, and they can view a list of items they can choose from to help them stick to their goal. The customer can save a customized meal that displays on the app what each item looks like, as well as the nutritional information.

These five apps have common content characteristics: They engage and inform the customer and give them a reason to stay interested in the brand. For content marketing creators, that is the goal.

A smartphone essential? The search engine 0

The search engine is proving to be the most essential tool at the disposal of smartphone users who responded to a recent survey.

It’s what mobilemarketingthey turn to when they want to know about what restaurant to dine at, the retailer to make a purchase, how to get from Point A to Point B. And it almost always involves accessing good, informative and searchable content for the mobile device.

Research by the advertising and technology company Local Corporation, gleaned from an online survey of 1,294 mobile shoppers in March, found that 73 percent of customers use search engines like Google in their smartphones to do their research about a product.

Search engine results are also a top influencer in purchasing decisions, with half of those customers surveyed saying it helps them make a decision, and 42 percent saying they rely on ratings and reviews.

The use of apps and other websites continues to gain traction, according to Local Corporation. Thirty-three percent of those surveyed turned to companies’ mobile specific websites, and 24 percent accessed mobile apps.

As consumers use their smartphones more for online searches, companies will need to do more than rely on keywords or search terms to attract customers. It also means a commitment on their part to high-quality content.

All eyes on these brand channels on YouTube 0

Video content for a camera that’s favored by the extreme activity set tops YouTube’s Brand Channel Leaderboard.

YouTube launched, with little fanfare, a list of the top 10 highest performing, most engaging and shareable brand channels. It looked at which brands have the most watch time, repeat viewership, likes and shares, and other factors to determine which have the most active fan bases.

This from Google:

“As brands continue to blur the line between advertiser and creator, we want to recognize those brands that regularly publish content—paid or otherwise—to build an engaged fan base.”

GoPro is the No. 1 brand channel for March. Customers to its official site can narrow their search for merchandise like cameras, software, mounts and accessories based on activities like skydiving, rock climbing or wakeboarding. There’s even a bundle of products for those in the military.

Six Pack Shortcuts, No. 2 on the leaderboard, offers extreme exercise advice on how to get a ripped body and six pack abs. Interestingly, YouTube at one time suspended the account of the channel’s owner, fitness specialist Mike Chang, and blocked all the content. Google now says Six Pack Shortcuts creates content “based on who is responding to its videos to drive continued engagement.”

And the one you’ve probably not familiar with, unless you’re one of its fans? Rainbow Loom, known for its colorful rubber band bracelets.

Its introductory video has been viewed 1.6 million times, and Google says the channel has built a passionate fan base through its instructional videos and user-generated content.

The others that made the list:

  • Sony Playstation
  • Warner Bros. Pictures
  • League of Legends
  • Sony Pictures
  • Call of Duty
  • Nintendo
  • Game maker Ubisoft

 

 

The voracious digital omnivores 0

The number of consumers with more than one digital device continues to grow, and they are hungry for content.

mobilecontentDeloitte recently released the findings of its eighth Digital Democracy Survey, which show that over a third of U.S. consumers – 37 percent – are digital omnivores, consumers who own tablets, smartphones and laptops. That’s a 42 percent increase from the previous year.

The growth is primarily driven by continued tablet usage and increased smartphone ownership. Tablet ownership rose from 13 percent in  2011 to 48 percent last year, according to Deloitte.

In addition, women, who made up 35 percent of digital omnivores a year ago, now comprise 45 percent of the group.

As the usage of tablets and smartphones as content devices grows, owners are craving more content. Interest in streaming content has nearly doubled, from 17 percent in 2012 to 32 percent in 2013, with interest in digital formats outpacing demand for physical media.

But Deloitte’s survey also found that consumers remain content with pay TV subscriptions, with only 6 percent saying they would give up their paid TV services next year.  Also, a majority of consumers said they still prefer to rent movies and television programming rather than purchase it.

With ownership of multiple devices on the rise, so is multitasking. According to Deloitte’s survey, 86 percent of consumers continue to be distracted by another device with watching TV, up from 72 percent in 2011. Yet only 22 percent of those involved in multitasking are doing activities directly related to the programs they are watching.

Millennials, those in the 14-to-24 demographic, are the most active of multitaskers, doing four activities while watching TV.

You can read more about Deloitte’s Digital Democracy Survey here. Feel free to tell us what you think.

deloitte_infografic_one

 

Survey: A quarter of U.S. companies have yet to go mobile 0

Companies still have a way to go when it comes to embracing mobile technology, according to a new survey.

Just over a quarter of U.S. companies – 28 percent – do not have a mobile technology strategy, according to a Robert Half Technology survey.

The survey is based on 2,300 telephone interviews with chief information officers from a random sampling of U.S. companies.

In the same survey, 70 percent of the firms have some type of mobile strategy, with the majority – 56 percent – saying they use a blend of apps  and mobile-friendly websites.

The survey also says:

  • The health care industry lags behind when it comes to leveraging the use of mobile devices for customer and patient engagement. According to the survey, 36 percent of respondents from health care companies say their organization has no mobile strategy. More than 60 percent of those polled from business services and retail say their companies embrace mobile technology for customer engagement.
  • Many of the companies with a mobile strategy are not emphasizing the use of apps to connect with customers and clients. Of the CIOs surveyed, 58 percent said their company has not developed a mobile app for customers and clients and has no plans to offer one in the next 12 months. Another 22 percent say their business plans to create a native app for customers in the next 12 months.

Three resources for crafting solid headline content 0

When it comes to attracting new customers to your online marketing content, the headline is one of your most effective tools.

A well-written and informative headline peaks the reader’s interest and draws them into checking out the content, be it for scanning or thorough reading.

If you have a minute or two, here’s a segment by the CEO of Los Angeles-based Fresh SEO Company on resources to create effective, engaging headlines for your content.

Converting scanners into readers 0

Users of mobile devices don’t spend a lot of time digesting lengthy Web content. One research study found that only 16 percent of people read what they see on a website word for word. Everyone else mostly scans the page for the information most relevant to them.

placeit(13)But give the user good information of interest, and even scanners can be convinced to become readers.

That means giving the user what they want in written digital content: compelling headlines, factually rich material, and strong organization of the content.

Your brand is the message that is being presented in the content. It can be sharply written, but should follow Web content basics. Get to the point high in the text. Focus on concise paragraphs. Use carefully worded headings to draw and maintain the reader’s interest. And even though it’s marketing content, resist the self-promotional urge.

Try these steps to convert the page scanners into readers of your written content.

Going native: The push for customized marketing content 0

The brewer of Miller and Coors wants customers to tune in to their newsroom, and they’re paying big bucks to see that it gets done.

A new alliance between the brewer and online giant AOL is the latest example of how far content marketing strategists are willing to go to ensure their brand message reaches the ideal consumer audience.

mobileadsThe creation of customized brand content continues to flourish on the Web, embraced by marketing pros thinking outside the box to get the attention of consumers in an ad-laden market. The trend for this type of brand marketing — custom content, native advertising, brand content, sponsored content — continues to move upward.

Native advertising on social media channels is projected to jump from $3.1 billion this year to $5 billion in 2017. Increased mobile access to social media, content portals, news  properties, video-sharing sites and streaming services has fueled much of the growth, according to emarketer.com.

The potential to get the brand message out to a lucrative market, while maintaining ownership of the “editorial” content, has companies moving to create entire divisions to develop the marketing editorial content and even distribute it through media channels.

The Wall Street Journal recently introduced sponsored content to its website produced by its in-house custom content division. The Washington Post began selling native ads last year for its site, and Gannett-owned USA Today is exploring the use of native advertising content.

The deal between brewer MillerCoors and AOL is worth an estimated $5 million, according to MediaPost.com, citing sources. As part of an integrated strategy, AOL will produce about 350 pieces of original content that will plug Miller Lite, Coors Lite, Blue Moon ale, or Redd’s Apple Ale. The content will focus on males in the millennial demographic, among the most mobile-device and social-media savvy of consumers.

That content, to be called the “Brew Pub Newsroom,” will appear on AOL properties including the Huffington Post, HuffPost Live and Mandatory.com. Miller Lite will also sponsor a video content segment on HuffPost Live targeted at male millennials.

 

 

 

Helpful tips for your headline writing 0

Creating content for the Web involves many elements, from well-written and researched text and compelling images to video that promotes your brand. Yet the most effective part of the content can be summed up in a few words.

The headline is what first catches the eye of the reader, the initial words viewed of your marketing content. It is where the SEO keywords go that put your article high on the list of interest. Creative and informative headlines are particularly effective for a mobile device. But, when written without much thought, they can also turn off a potential consumer.

So, how do come up with a headline that attracts the reader and keeps them focused on your content?

These links can prove helpful in your task.

Tips for creating a video content strategy 0

The effective use of video content is not just essential to content marketing strategy, it’s a required element. Consider predictions that say 90 percent of Internet traffic this year will comprise of video.

That’s a lot of webinars, product reviews, corporate Q&A standups and branding campaigns to sort through, particularly if you are using a smartphone of tablet device.

Well-produced, well-executed video content that’s unique and shareable can go a long way in ensuring that your brand marketing plan takes off in the right direction.

But putting that component together requires some thought.

Here’s some advice to help the content marketing planning braintrust get started when it comes to video content, courtesy of Business 2 Community:

  • Do explore multiple types of video content.
  • Don’t go on too long, or risk losing audience engagement.
  • Do invite your audience in. It’s okay to encourage the viewer engagement experience.
  • Don’t exceed your ability. Bring in an expert with experience in creating and editing video for best results. It’s better than posting poor video content.
  • Do consider your video marketing distribution and promotion to amplify the brand message and expand the audience discovering your work.
  • Do make sure your video content aligns with the overall marketing strategy and brand. Adhere to the company’s tone and style to enhance its image.